In recent years, advances in technology, as well as ever evolving tastes in style, have led to substantial changes in the design of automobiles. One of the changes involves the complexity, as well as the power usage, of the various electrical systems within automobiles, particularly alternative fuel vehicles, such as hybrid, electric, and fuel cell vehicles.
Such vehicles, particularly fuel cell vehicles, often use two separate voltage sources, such as a battery and a fuel cell, to power the electric motors that drive the wheels. Power converters, such as direct current-to-direct current (DC/DC) converters, are typically used to manage and transfer the power from the two voltage sources. Modern DC/DC converters often include transistors electrically interconnected by an inductor. By controlling the states of the transistors, a desired average current can be impressed through the inductor.
For control and feedback purposes, the current through the inductor is measured. Typically, this measurement occurs at a mid-point of a duty cycle, or “on-period,” of one of the transistors, as theoretically the inductor current will be at its average value at that point. However, due to an inherent delay between the activation of the transistor and the flow of current through the transistor and/or the inductor, the current measurement may be inaccurate. As a result, performance of the power converter, as well as the vehicle, may be less than optimal.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a system and method for improving the accuracy of the feedback current conducting through an electrical component, such as an inductor in a DC/DC converter. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the foregoing technical field and background.